


the danger is i'm dangerous (and i might just tear you apart)

by priorwalter



Series: Andreil Week 2019 [7]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Copious Amounts Of Swearing, M/M, Twilight AU, Vampire andrew, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-13
Updated: 2019-07-13
Packaged: 2020-06-27 03:45:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,010
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19782577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/priorwalter/pseuds/priorwalter
Summary: “I have some questions.”“What makes you think I want to answer them?” Andrew snaps. He lights another cigarette.“I’ll tell you what you want to know,” Neil says. “I know you’re curious.” His hand brushes against the burn mark on his cheekbone.Andrew thinks for a moment. “Fine. Make it quick.”“You don’t age, right?” Andrew nods. Neil affects an innocent voice and asks, “How long have you been thirteen?”“I’ll drain you fucking dry, Josten,” Andrew growls, flicking his cigarette butt off the roof.**Andrew is a creature of the night. Neil is too nosy for his own good and nowhere near as bothered as he should be about the whole 'vampire' thing. Yes, it's a Twilight AU.





	the danger is i'm dangerous (and i might just tear you apart)

**Author's Note:**

> The title is from Kill of the Night by Gin Wigmore. Thanks again for the idea for this, Kev, you're a lifesaver and a genius. 
> 
> EDIT: series title from Closer by Kings of Leon.
> 
> Prompts used: "I could kill you right now", "I don't need your help", "are you afraid?".
> 
> Note: Neil doesn't know Kevin at all because the More Yams and the mob aren't a thing in this AU so they've never met. TW: blood and violence, Neil and Andrew swearing a lot. It starts off sort of like the plot of Twilight and then goes way off course and doesn't come back. Enjoy!

Neil hates Andrew Minyard.

They sit together in biology. The only reason Neil’s in biology is because it was the least unpleasant class in the time slot. Neil’s not one to faint at the sight of blood, but some of it is disgusting. Who cares about the number of nuclei in the mycelium? Not Neil, that’s for sure. 

Andrew Minyard has a similar opinion on the subject, but his tests always come back with big red 100s on them, which is just unfair. He never pays attention in class. He’s always doing his best to sit as far away from Neil as possible in spite of the fact that their assigned seats have them as lab partners. Neil is no stranger to being rude, but Andrew Minyard is plain evil. 

Both Minyards missed the day where the class had to prick their fingers to find out their blood types. It’s possible that they’re both just squeamish, but something about them puts Neil on edge. He’s not planning on staying in Palmetto for too long, but if the Minyards cause any trouble, he might have to get the hell out of dodge.

Neil is so far removed from the social atmosphere of Palmetto High he may as well be on a different planet, but even he’s heard stories about the Minyards. Well, not just the Minyards; a whole group of people. He’s seen them at lunch. They all sit together in the cafeteria. They’re said to be adopted siblings, other than the twins: the Minyards, Nicky Hemmick, Matt Boyd, Allison Reynolds, Dan Wilds, Kevin Day, Seth Gordon, and Renee Walker. They all have a similar washed out about them even though they’re not related. 

Their adopted parents are pretty famous around Palmetto; Wymack is the exy coach at the high school, and Abby Winfield is a doctor. They’re all a bit of a mystery, apparently. Neil doesn’t plan on getting caught in the hype. He doesn’t give much of a shit about any of them.

Except for goddamn Andrew Minyard. 

He even looks like an asshole. He has a blond undercut and hazel eyes that sometimes get so dark they’re almost black. He’s so pale he looks like he’d sparkle in the sun, but Palmetto is such a rainy, sad little town that Neil thinks the residents haven’t seen the sun in years. He has more muscles than any high school student has any right to. It’s disgusting. 

  
The only positive about Andrew Minyard is that Neil never sees him outside of biology. Palmetto has a small enough population that Neil passes by half of the students at his school when he goes for a run, but Andrew doesn’t seem to leave the house. 

Or, Neil thought so.

He’s running in the backroads of Palmetto just on the edge of town where the streets are lined with tall evergreens. The only houses out here are the huge, old-looking places set at the end of long-winding gravel driveways. Usually, it’s empty out here, save for a few stray deer or squirrels. That’s why it’s so surprising when he sees Andrew Minyard and Kevin Day walking in the middle of the road. They’re a long ways away, and Neil doesn’t think they’ve spotted him. They’re arguing about something, but Neil’s not close enough to hear. 

Suddenly, there’s a roaring noise, and a black car comes speeding out of nowhere, heading straight for Kevin. Moving so quickly that Neil doesn’t quite believe what he’s seeing, Andrew shoves the _car_ aside. It skids into the forest and wraps around a tree trunk. Kevin starts to scold Andrew, but Andrew doesn’t react. 

Neil turns and runs before either has the chance to spot him. He needs to get out of Palmetto, and soon. He sprints most of the way back, but slows down to a regular pace when he emerges from the forested area into town. He gets a few odd looks, but pays them no mind; he’ll never see these people again. 

He’s squatting in a half-built house on the edge of town. Luckily, it’s far enough away from the neighbours that Neil can come and go easily. He grabs his duffel and walks to the community centre to have a shower before making his way to the library. There’s a sign on the door stating that the library will be closed for construction for a few days later that week.

The librarians know him, even though it hasn’t been long since he arrived in Palmetto. The library is a nice place because he can stay there for as long as it’s open without buying anything. He sits down at one of the computers with the intention of buying a bus ticket to the nearest major city, but what he saw in the backroads niggles at the back of his mind. 

Neil looks around to make sure no one is close enough to read his computer screen, and looks up ‘superhuman strength’. There are a lot of strange results about superheroes, myths, and legends. It’s all bullshit, of course. Neil probably imagined it. 

But.

One of the webpages talks about vampires. 

Neil knows there are monsters in the world, and he doubts any of them could be worse than his father. Lola used to dabble in the occult here and there, but Neil always assumed it was to scare him. Maybe she was onto something. Neil’s mother, too, used to draw sigils by their doors and windows when they were in certain places, but she never explained why.

He keeps researching vampires. Andrew, Kevin, and all of their other adopted siblings look pale and tired-looking. Matt Boyd, despite his cheery demeanor, always has undereye circles that stand out against his dark skin. Some websites say they have red eyes, too; Renee Walker wears contacts. Neil knows because he wears coloured contacts so often. He wonders what she’s hiding. 

He finally buys a bus ticket, but the bus only comes all the way out to Palmetto once a week, so he has to wait until another seven days; he just missed the last one. Hopefully, Neil can survive until then.

**

Something must have it out for Neil, because he’s having a very hard time surviving until the bus arrives.

On Wednesday evening, someone tried to take Neil’s duffel from him and gave him a black eye in the process. The very next day, he went running in the morning before school and a branch came seemingly out of nowhere to trip him, leaving his knees and palms scraped to hell and back. Some of his teachers gave him concerned looks, but he doesn’t care. Andrew sits basically on the edge of his seat in biology in school that Thursday, as away from Neil as humanly (or not) possible without running across the room. 

At the end of the day, as Neil walks home he finds Andrew Minyard sitting on the roof of Sheetz, smoking a cigarette. All of his instincts are telling him to leave it alone, but he can’t; he’d be left wondering forever. 

There doesn’t appear to be a ladder anywhere, leading Neil to wonder how Andrew got up. Neil scales the building with ease, used to it after years with his mother, and sits beside Andrew. Andrew freezes, but says nothing. 

“I saw you the other day,” Neil says casually, feeling like he’s poking a hornet’s nest. “When you stopped that car from hitting Kevin.”

“I know,” Andrew replies, and takes a drag from his cigarette. 

“What are you?” Neil asks bluntly. 

Andrew rolls his eyes. “Why do you care, rabbit? You’re going to run off anyway.” At Neil’s incredulous look, he adds, “You aren’t as subtle as you think you are.”

“Making a car crash with your bare hands isn’t subtle either,” Neil points out. “Are you going to answer the question?”

Andrew thinks for a moment. “No. You think you already know.”

Neil frowns. “What?”

Andrew waves a hand vaguely. “You saw me ‘stop a car with my bare hands’, you probably did some research, no? You’d be an idiot otherwise.”

Neil shrugs with one shoulder. “You’re a vampire.” He makes sure his voice is even, but he feels ridiculous saying it aloud.

“Ding ding ding,” Andrew says. It sounds odd in his monotone. “Got it in one. Happy now? Go away.” 

“You could be lying,” Neil says. 

Andrew takes another drag. “I don’t care if you think I’m telling the truth. Now go away before I push you off the roof.”

Neil does.

It doesn’t take long for them to meet again. Neil is in grade twelve calculus because his fake papers say he already has the credit for eleventh grade math. This was the one indulgence Neil allowed himself after his mother’s death; if he has to go to high school, he may as well enjoy it. He has calculus with Matt Boyd, and they get paired together for a group assignment. “Where do you want to meet?” Matt asks, but Neil’s more focused on the sallowness of his skin, like he hasn’t eaten in a while.

“The library?” Neil suggests.

Matt shakes his head. “They’re renovating it for the next couple days. You could come to my house?”

Neil balks at the thought of entering a house chock-full of vampires, but it’s not like he has a place they can go to. He can always cancel at the last second if he needs to. “Sure,” Neil says. “Where do you live?”

Matt shakes his head. “I’ll pick you up, just give me your address.” 

Neil shakes his head. “You don’t need to.” 

“It’s no problem, man—”

“No,” Neil says, probably more harshly than necessary. “I’ll walk.”

Matt sighs and gives Neil his address. Unsurprisingly, it’s near where Neil saw Kevin and Andrew that night. He feels strange at the thought of being in Andrew’s house, though the vampire thing is oddly not bothering him. Maybe it just hasn’t set in, or maybe he doesn’t truly believe Andrew.

“If you change your mind and want me to drive you, here’s my number,” Matt says, writing down the number on a piece of paper. Neil thanks him and pockets it, but he doesn’t have a phone. Not that he tells Matt that. He waves goodbye before Matt can try to continue the conversation and walks away.

**

Neil knocks on the door of the Boyd-Day-Gordon-Hemmick-Minyard-Reynolds-Walker-Wilds-Winfield-Wymack household apprehensively. He was half-expecting a Victorian-era mansion, but this house seems completely normal, if large. It has to be to house so many people, he supposes. 

Wymack answers and grins when he sees Neil. “Boyd said you were coming over. Come on in.” Wymack leads him to the kitchen where Matt and Dan are talking animatedly. 

Matt looks up. “Hey, Neil! Do you know Dan?” When Neil shakes his head, Dan stands up.

“Dan Wilds. Nice to meet you, Neil. People gossip about you as much as they do us,” she says with a glint in her eyes. Neil freezes at her words. He snaps out of it quickly, but Matt, Dan, and Wymack obviously all notice it. 

Matt breaks the awkward silence. “Do you want to get started?”

Neil nods, thankful for the distraction. They finish the assignment in a matter of hours; Matt is friendly and receptive of Neil’s ideas, and Neil is good at calculus. Neil starts to pack up so he can leave, but Andrew appears in the kitchen. Neil should have heard his footsteps, but he heard nothing. He stops moving. 

“Josten.” Andrew says like the name tastes sour on his lips.

“Andrew,” Neil replies. Andrew walks away abruptly. Neil follows wordlessly. Matt protests, but Neil’s not paying attention. 

They end up on the roof of the house. Neil shouldn’t be surprised. He looks around. The property is beautiful; the cleared area surrounding the house is well-maintained, and their vantage point gives Neil a good view of the sprawling forest.

“What are you running from?” Andrew asks. He produces a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and lights one. 

“What does it matter?” Neil asks. 

“Some shady people round these parts,” Andrew says evenly. “There’s enough legends about my family in this town to put us in danger if the wrong person put it together. You never know who’s out there.” He turns to Neil and raises an eyebrow. “Your turn. Who are you running from?”

“The person I’m running from is of no concern to you,” Neil snaps. “He only wants me.”

Andrew’s words are slow and measured when he says, “If you don’t tell me, I will consider you a loose end.”

Neil knows enough about what’s done with loose ends from his parents, so he says quietly, “My father. He prefers to kill people, so you don’t have to worry. I guess you two have that in common.”

Andrew digests this for a moment. “We don’t kill people,” Andrew corrects.

“What?” 

Andrew gives him an unamused glare. “Idiot. We only drink from animals.”

Neil feels like he should be more disturbed by this than he is, but he feels like a weight was lifted off of his shoulders now that murder is off the table. “Kind of you,” he says sarcastically.

Andrew stares back out at the forest. “What kind of man was your father if he made you unafraid of me?” 

Neil scowls. “Fuck off, I don’t know you. Also, you’re a vegetarian vampire, why would I be scared of you?” 

“Vegetarian vampire,” Andrew mutters. In the blink of an eye, he throws his cigarette asides and leans over Neil so there’s barely an inch between their bodies. He bares his impossibly sharp teeth and narrows his eyes. He looks… well, like a vampire. “I could kill you right now,” he whispers. “I wouldn’t care.” 

Neil doesn’t move away. “You won’t, though. You don’t drink humans’ blood for a reason. Your family would be upset, wouldn’t they?” 

Andrew pulls away, disgust on his face. “You have no survival instincts. It’s a wonder your father hasn’t caught up with you.” 

Neil elects to ignore that. “I have some questions.”

“What makes you think I want to answer them?” Andrew snaps. He lights another cigarette. 

“I’ll tell you what you want to know,” Neil says. “I know you’re curious.” His hand brushes against the burn mark on his cheekbone. 

Andrew thinks for a moment. “Fine. Make it quick.”

“You don’t age, right?” Andrew nods. Neil affects an innocent voice and asks, “How long have you been thirteen?” 

“I’ll drain you fucking dry, Josten,” Andrew growls, flicking his cigarette butt off the roof.

“That’s not an answer.” 

“I was Turned ninety years ago, but we never really change. I’ll always be stuck in the mind of a seventeen year old,” he explains. 

“Annoying,” Neil says. 

“What’s the story behind that?” Andrew asks, gesturing to his own cheekbone. 

“One of my father’s people. She got me in her car and made good use of the dashboard lighter,” he says quietly. “I have one more question. What happens when you’re in sunlight?”

Andrew stubs his cigarette on the roof. “I’m not answering that.”

“Do you die?” Neil presses. “I won’t try to kill you, I promise. There’s no sun in Palmetto anyway.”

Andrew sighs. “We don’t die.”

  
“But something happens.”

Andrew nods.

They sit in silence on the roof for a long time. Finally, Neil gets. It feels wrong to leave Andrew on the roof, but he doesn’t want to be here for too long. 

**

The town of Palmetto must have a vendetta against him. It’s the only explanation. Not twenty-four hours later, Neil is running through town when a cyclist comes out of nowhere and careens into him. He hits his head on the ground and then things go black. 

Probably only thirty seconds later, a car stops beside him. Or, Neil thinks so. He’s certainly awake but everything feels fuzzy and oversaturated. The car — or is it a truck? — is blue. There are some familiar voices having a heated conversation around him, though he doesn’t care to try and decipher it.

Suddenly, two pairs of hands wrap around him: one around his shoulder and the other at his knees. He thrashes in spite of the pounding of his head, fighting to get out of their grip, but the people are too strong. He cries out hoarsely, but a hand appears over his mouth. 

“Neil, it’s Matt. We’re taking you to a doctor, buddy,” Matt says. “Can you hear me? It’s Matt and Dan. You’re gonna be fine.” Neil hopes this person is really Matt Boyd because he’s nowhere near lucid enough to dispute the claim or fight him off.

“Don’t fall asleep,” a female voice says. There’s some quiet conversation, then the woman (Dan?) whispers, “I’m going to sit in the back of the truck. You can either sit up or lie down with your head on my lap.” Neil thinks he says something about sitting up, but then Dan lays him down in the back seat anyway. It’s fine, though, because he could just fall asleep like this with his head pillowed in Dan’s lap.

“No sleeping, you probably have a concussion,” Dan hisses.

That makes sense, Neil thinks, but it doesn’t really register in his mind. He drifts in and out of awareness until the truck stops. Dan warns him that they’re going to lift him again and he better not try to fight them, Neil, but Neil still struggles against their grip when they carry him inside. His shirt feels wet, oddly enough, so he looks down to find it soaked red. Weird.

Dan and Matt lie him down on something he thinks is a table. There’s some shouting from a familiar voice about touching him without asking, Boyd, but things aren’t really making sense anymore. 

He snaps out of the haze when someone is stitching up his chest, at which point he throws his arms out and shoves away whoever’s leaning over him. His fists connect and he sits up quickly. He feels the unfinished stitches coming undone, but he doesn’t care. 

He finds Abby Winfield standing a few feet away with a red mark on her cheekbone. She’s the only one in the room, though he’s sure there were people (do they count as people?) there when he was brought here. He looks down at his chest where the stitches are and sees a long, bloody gash. There’s one on his shoulder, too, and a smaller one on his stomach. Even more alarming is the fact that his shirt is cut open, revealing his numerous scars. He pulls the remains of his shirt over his chest, ignoring the twinge of pain and his pounding headache. “I’m leaving,” he says. 

“Please don’t,” Abby says. “I know you’re feeling very disoriented right now, but it would be best if you let me finish your stitches. You’ve lost a lot of blood and you have a minor concussion.”

“Leave me alone,” he snarls. He tries to get off the table, but his stomach lurches dangerously and he leans back against it. “I don’t know you. Get away from me.”

Abby puts her hands up and steps a few feet back. It’s only then that Neil realizes what kind of danger he’s in. Abby Winfield is a vampire, and Neil is bleeding profusely. He narrows his eyes. “I thought you all drank animal blood. Why are you a doctor? That’s disgusting,” he says. Had Andrew lied to him? Was Abby that cruel?

Abby’s eyes widen with surprise. “How did you know?” She glances down at Neil’s chest. “Neil, you really need to lie back down and let me finish your stitches. You’re going to pass out.” 

Neil glares. “Don’t come near me.” He picks up the medical kid lying beside him and starts stitching himself up in spite of his shaky hands.

“Neil, I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Abby says, flitting her hands about fretfully.

“I don’t need your help,” he snaps. There will be some messy scars because of his unsteady hands, but he doesn’t care. Abby waits patiently until he’s finished with all of his injuries before stepping slowly closer.

“I’m not going to hurt you, Neil. You know we don’t drink from humans. I’m a doctor because I care about people. I would not have gone into this profession if I believed I was a danger to humans,” Abby explains. “I have excellent self-control. Your safety is my highest priority. I promise you that if I ever felt my self-control slipping, I would leave the hospital.” 

Neil relaxes ever so slightly. “Where did Matt and Dan go?”

“Most of the others aren’t as practiced as me,” Abby says regretfully. “They’re all outside. Except for Andrew.”

“Is he like you?”

Abby nods.

Neil considers this for a moment, but deems it irrelevant for the moment. “Can I have another shirt?”

Abby nods. “Can I call Andrew in here, or would you rather I go get it from him?”

“Don’t let him in here,” Neil says quickly. The thought of anyone else seeing his scars makes him feel queasy. 

Abby nods and leaves the kitchen. Neil takes the time to look around the room. His duffel is on the ground by the table, hopefully untouched. He brings it with him absolutely everywhere because he doesn’t trust it to be left in the house he’s squatting in, despite his relative privacy. You never know what might happen, and his mother taught him better than to leave the bag containing every single one of his belongings unattended. The door to the back yard is wide open like everyone left in a rush; Neil supposes it’s good that they did.

Abby returns with a button up, short-sleeved shirt. It’s black. Neil thinks absently that Andrew would look good in it, and then wonders where that thought came from. “Thanks,” he says. 

Abby turns around so he can change his shirt in privacy and says, “You shouldn’t wear shirts without buttons for a few days while that chest wound heals, it’s in a bit of a tricky spot.”

Neil fights back the urge to snap at her. He knows what to do when he has stitches. Christ. He peels off his bloody shirt and gingerly puts on the button-up. He buttons it up very slowly, mindful of the gash on his shoulder, and tells Abby she can turn around. 

“Andrew wants to see you,” she says. “I can take you to his room, if you want.” 

Neil sighs. “Fine.” He picks up his duffel bag and lets Abby lead him up upstairs. 

Andrew’s room is bare, boring, and black. Neil is envious that he has his own bedroom, but that’s not what’s important. Andrew is lying on his black bedspread wearing black clothes, painting his nails black.

“You’re really taking this vampire thing to heart, huh,” Neil says. “I thought the goth thing was a myth.” 

“I’m not goth,” Andrew says without looking up. 

Neil inspects his labret piercing, then the ring on his septum. Both black. “I thought you didn’t lie.”

Andrew caps the bottle and makes eye contact with Neil. “Shut the fuck up.” 

“Why did you want to see me?” Neil asks. The scent of nail polish is overwhelming. He read online that vampires have enhanced senses. If that’s true, Andrew is a masochist. 

Andrew looks away. “When they brought you in, Abby started cutting your shirt open before I left,” he explains bluntly. “I saw scars.”

The breath leaves Neil’s body. Abby was okay; if it had to be anyone, she seems trustworthy. Neil doesn’t think she’ll tell anyone, either. He hopes not. “What did you see.” His voice is flat and low. Dangerous. 

“I saw the hot iron before I realized,” Andrew replies. “What do you want in return?” His eyes blaze with intensity. Neil can’t look away. 

Neil thinks for a moment. There’s no information he needs from Andrew, really, but he is curious about one thing. “I want to see what happens to you in the sun.”

Andrew’s blank expression doesn’t change, but when he says, “Fine,” his voice is sharp and irritated. This feels like a win, somehow. “Let me call the others inside first.” 

Neil waits for Andrew to make sure the other vampires (what the hell is his life) are safe inside so Neil can safely go outside. As Andrew leads him out, a few others stare at him, or glare, in Seth’s case. Neil ignores them. Andrew doesn’t say a word and leads him into the forest. They walk for a good half hour in silence before Neil sees a sunny clearing up ahead. He shouldn’t feel excited as he does.

Andrew pauses at the edge of the clearing. Neil steps into the light and waits patiently. Andrew lets out a gusty sigh, the biggest show of emotion Neil has ever seen from him, and follows.

Whatever Neil was expecting, it wasn’t this. Andrew’s skin glitters like diamonds. It’s blinding. It makes his hair glow like a halo. His eyes seem to be glowing. Neil feels like the breath has been knocked out of him. He doesn’t know how to properly react to the fact that vampires fucking glow in the sunlight, so he says, “That really ruins the goth aesthetic, doesn’t it.”

Andrew snarls, “I hate you so fucking much.”

“Does it hurt?”

Andrew shakes his head. “It’s just inconvenient.” 

“That’s sort of boring, actually,” Neil says thoughtfully. “Turning to ash would be more impressive.”

Andrew gives Neil an incredulous look. “Aren’t you scared? I could drink every drop of your blood and you wouldn’t be able to fight me off. You must be stupider than you look.” 

“You won’t hurt me,” Neil says confidently. “It doesn’t really matter what you are. A human could kill me just as easily as you.”

Andrew cocks his head. “There’s a story there.”

“You saw the iron burn,” Neil says, which is explanation enough. “Can you get out of the sun? I feel like I need sunglasses. Unless you like it, of course, in which case—”

“I am going to murder you,” Andrew mutters. “It would be warranted.” He retreats back into the shade of the forest and Neil follows. They make their way back to the house. 

“You’re not walking home like that,” Andrew says. It’s not a declaration, like he’s offering a drive; more like a neutral statement of a fact. 

“I was going to run, actually,” Neil retorts only because he knows Andrew won’t like it. 

Andrew exhales sharply and leaves Neil standing alone in the kitchen. Neil considers leaving, but Matt appears a few feet away. Neil didn’t even hear him approach. It could be the concussion, but he doubts it. 

“Feeling better?” He asks. There is a significant distance between them. Neil wonders why, but he doesn’t want to think too hard about the answer. 

Neil nods. “Good as new.”

Matt sighs. “Abby said you know.”

“Andrew told me.” 

“Asshole,” Matt mutters. “Sorry you had to find out from him.”

Neil frowns. “Why?”

Matt gives him an odd look, but doesn’t comment. “Are you going home now?”

Neil nods. “I think so. Thanks for finding me, by the way. You didn’t have to help me.” 

Matt’s eyebrows shoot toward his hairline. “Dude, you were knocked out on the side of the road. We turned you over and there was glass in your chest. We couldn’t just leave you there.” 

So that’s where the gashes came from. “Oh. Well, thanks.”

“Neil,” Andrew’s voice says from behind him. Keys jingle. “Come on.” 

“You aren’t driving me home,” Neil says sharply without turning around. “Put your fucking keys away.” 

“If you don’t get in my car, I will bleed you dry and leave you to the werewolves,” Andrew says calmly, as if this is a normal thing to say. 

Neil rolls his eyes. “Fuck you, asshole, I’m not getting in your bougie ass car.” Andrew’s Maserati is famous around school. It’s mostly famous because he has a reputation for being an incorrigible asshole and no one thinks he deserves the car. Neil can’t say he disagrees. 

“You’re so weird. I dream about killing you,” Andrew replies evenly.

Neil sighs heavily. “You are not going to drive me home.” 

“Do you not have one?” Andrew asks. The genuine question feels out of place in their rapid-fire bickering. Neil finds himself feeling disappointed. 

“None of your business,” he snaps. “I’m leaving.” Andrew steps in front of him, blocking his path. Neil moves to the side, but Andrew is too quick. Neil sighs. “Fine. Jesus Christ.” Andrew looks over Neil’s shoulder at Matt. Neil follows his gaze and finds Matt retreating. 

They get into the Maserati. Neil hates everything about it, especially the fact that it’s black. “You say you aren’t goth, but everything about you screams it. Live your goth truth, Andrew.”

Andrew hits the horn. It blares for six straight seconds. “Why are you focused more on the goth thing than the vampire thing? Did your murderer father teach you nothing?”

“So you are goth.” Andrew bares his teeth. “God, fine. I don’t know. You look like a person. A goth person.” He glances at Andrew’s still-bared, inhumanly sharp teeth. “Well, most of the time. And my murderer father taught me many things, such as how to carve a person’s liver out. But I don’t think you need your liver, so it wouldn’t help me much.” 

Andrew’s lip curls menacingly. He says, “Hot.”

“What?”

“Nothing. Do you have a house or what?” 

Neil shrugs and makes a see-saw motion with his hand. “I’m squatting in this place on the other side of town.”

Andrew takes the keys out of the ignition. “I am not going to drive you all the way across town so you can sleep on the floor of an empty house.”

Neil scoffs. “Where else do you propose I sleep then, oh wise one? The streets? The forest? I’m not staying in your vampire den, thanks.” 

Andrew thinks for a moment. “The motel. We’ll pay for it.”

“Why do you care so much, Andrew? I thought you hated me. You don’t care about anyone.”

Andrew shrugs. “Doesn’t mean I wouldn’t blow you.”

Neil chooses not to respond to this. “I can pay for the motel. Also, wait, no, I don’t want to stay in the motel, stay out of my life.” 

Andrew pins him down with a look. “You want to sleep on the hard floor of a drafty house? Is that what you really want? Idiot.” 

“I don’t need a motel and I don’t need your charity. I can survive on my own,” Neil snaps. He moves to open the door, but Andrew locks the car. Neil unlocks it manually, but Andrew locks it again. He tries a few more times to no avail. 

Andrew glares at him with intense, smoldering eyes. Neil can’t look away. “I’m taking you to the motel and I am going to get you a room there. Don’t argue with me.” 

“It’s not like I can stop you,” Neil grumbles. Andrew nods with satisfaction and starts the car. While they drive to the motel, Neil asks, “Wait. One more question.”

“Fucking google it, bitch,” Andrew mutters. 

“Why are you always leaning away from me in biology?” Neil asks. “I feel like I deserve to know that.” 

Andrew speeds up the car. The speedometer says they’re nearing a hundred miles per hour. “Your blood smells. Very good.” 

“To all vampires?”

Andrew closes his eyes momentarily and shakes his head. “Just me.”

“Huh.” Neil pauses. “Is that why you said…”

Andrew huffs at Neil’s modesty. “That I would blow you?”

Neil nods, blushing. “Yes. Is that why?”

Andrew looks at him like he’s the stupidest person — being? — on Earth. “No. I’m a monster, but not that much of a monster.” 

“Hmmm.” Neil thinks back to the ‘hot’ comment from earlier. “So why did you say it?”

Andrew gives him the same you’re-so-stupid-I-can’t-believe-I’m-speaking-to-you look. “It’s pretty self-explanatory, genius.” 

Neil shrugs. “I guess.” He grins. “You like me.”

The car skids to a stop. Neil hits the dashboard. He’s not heavy enough to activate the airbags. His wounds smart. “What the fuck?” He hisses. “How do you have a driver’s license?”

“No, I don’t like you,” Andrew says slowly, “I said I would blow you. Doesn’t mean anything except for that I think you’re hot. Also, I’m an amazing driver, fuck you.”

Neil scrunches his face. “Why would you want to do that with someone you don’t like? Or know? Maybe you are creepy after all.”

Andrew sighs. “Neil, most people don’t think like that. Also, we don’t know each other.” 

Neil frowns. “Okay, weirdo.” 

Andrew stares at him, hazel eyes wide, but Neil doesn’t say anything else. He restarts the car, but they don’t drive straight to the motel. Instead, Andrew drives them in looping circles around Palmetto. They talk and drive until night falls. 

**

After school on Monday, Andrew corners Neil at his locker. “Come on,” he says, and then walks away. Neil follows quickly and is not surprised to find them at the Maserati. Unfortunately, three others are there, too: Nicky Hemmick, Aaron Minyard, and Kevin Day. 

“What is he doing here?” Aaron asks rudely. 

“Coming home with us,” Andrew replies. 

“What?” Neil asks.

Andrew nods at him. “You get the front seat.” 

There is some argument in the back; apparently, Kevin usually gets the front seat. Neil doesn’t particularly care. He spends the drive staring silently out the window, flat-out ignoring Nicky’s attempt at conversation. 

At the vampire house, Wymack and Abby are waiting. “Neil!” Abby says cheerfully. “We told Andrew to invite you over, but we weren’t sure if he would.”

“I knew he would,” Matt interjects. “You should have seen them yesterday. That conversation was more sexually charged than Allison and Seth’s dirty talk.” 

“Fuck off, Matthew,” Andrew says monotonously. “Neil, we can’t offer you dinner. We only drink the blood of innocents.”

“Andrew Minyard, you little shit,” Wymack growls. “Sorry, kid, he’s a bit raw on manners.”

Neil nods. “Trust me, I know.” 

Andrew leads Neil upstairs to his dreary black bedroom. Neil notices for the first time the stars stuck to the ceiling, the kind that glow in the dark. He elects not to comment on it, but Andrew sees him staring, which is good enough. 

“Why did you bring me here?” Neil asks. Andrew opens his mouth with a crude look on his face, so Neil interrupts, “Don’t tell me you’ve brought me here to kill me. I know you can drink all my blood and leave my soulless, bloodless husk out in the woods for the vultures but you’re not going to. You don’t lie, remember?” 

Andrew deflates. “Asshole. Bitch cunt. Fuck you.” 

“You’re so sweet, darling,” Neil says in a mockingly high voice. He watches carefully as Andrew picks at his black nail polish. A thought enters his mind. “I told you I’m homeless. You owe me one.” 

Andrew throws himself onto his bed. His clothes blend in with the sheets. Black on black on black. “What,” he says into his pillow.

Neil sits on the bed, careful to leave space between them. “What do you miss most about being alive?” 

Andrew groans. “Candy.” 

Neil digests this information. Another, more interesting thought comes to him. “Andrew, I think I want to kiss you.” 

Andrew glares murderously, but the effect is negated by how his head is nestled against the pillow. “You don’t want to kiss me.” 

“Hmmmm,” Neil says. “I disagree.” 

Andrew gives Neil a suspicious once-over. “You’re delirious and concussed. We hate each other.”

“You like me,” Neil points out. “You said so.”

“We’ve been over this, idiot,” Andrew says, slow and enunciated like he’s talking to a small child. “Wanting to suck your dick doesn’t mean I have feelings for you. I don’t have feelings.”

Neil raises an eyebrow. “Okay. Wanting to blow me and liking me are separate. That doesn’t mean you don’t like me.” 

“Don’t be stupid. I hate you,” Andrew says directly into his pillow. 

Neil grins. “Liar.”

Andrew rolls over so his head is by Neil’s thigh. “I thought you didn’t want to kiss people you don’t know.”

“We know each other,” Neil points out. “We basically spent the entire weekend together. I trust you not to murder and/or eat me.” 

“All the boxes checked, then,” Andrew mutters to himself. “I can’t kiss you anyway.” 

“Why not?” 

“I’d bite you, probably, and then accidentally drink your blood,” Andrew points out. 

“We’ll be careful,” Neil insists. The thought of _not_ kissing Andrew when he could be kissing him sounds like torture. “Come on, don’t be a pussy.”

“You’re risking your life because you want to hook up with me,” Andrew points out sensibly. “Not happening.” 

“You won’t kill me. Abby said you’re good at controlling yourself,” Neil argues. “Also, it’s not a hook up because it won’t be a one-time thing.”

Andrew sits up. “You don’t know that.”

Neil frowns at him. “If it’s going to be a one-time thing then I don’t want to kiss you.”

Andrew sighs. “It won’t be a one-time thing.”

“So it will be a thing?”

“No. I hate you. Shut your stupid mouth.” Andrew lies back down and rolls toward the wall. “I should have let the others kill you when you came in all bloody.” 

“But you didn’t.”

Andrew sighs again with deep despair. “I don’t believe in regret but I think I regret that.”

Soon, Andrew drives Neil home. Neil is sad to see him go. The motel feels even less like a home than the half-built house did. 

Later that night, Neil finds the bus ticket to Columbia in his duffel. He stares at it for half a moment, then tears it up and lights the shreds on fire for good measure. Does fire hurt vampires worse than humans? Some of the websites said that it did. He’ll have to ask Andrew.

**

It becomes routine: Andrew drives Neil to the vampire den after school every day and they hang out for a few hours. Neil meets the other vampires, but none catch his attention like Andrew does. Just before Neil leaves, they argue about kissing for a while. Andrew gets frustrated and angry and tells him it’s time to go, and then they put off parting at the motel with stupid, meaningless small talk they both hate.

One night, Neil stays too late at the house. (He’s not sure when he started referring to the vampires’ house as something as familiar and home-like as ‘the house’, but he doesn’t like it.) Andrew says, “Just stay the night.” 

Neil shakes his head. “I’m not sleeping in a vampire den.” 

“I’ll drive you home if you want,” Andrew replies, “but if you want to stay, you can sleep in here. I’ll stay with you all night if you want. I promise I won’t eat you.”

Neil looks out the window at the pitch-dark sky, and nods. “Let me get my pajamas.”

“Are you sure this is okay?” Neil asks

Andrew glares. “I don’t sleep. I have no use for my bed. Idiot.” 

“Okay, edgelord.” Hesitantly, Neil sits on the bed. “I don’t sleep well.”

“Somehow, I’m not surprised,” Andrew responds. 

“I haven’t left so you haven’t told me you can’t kiss me yet,” Neil says quietly. “You can’t just break routine like that.”

Andrew cocks his head. “You want me to tell you I can’t kiss you?”

“No, Andrew, you know what I want.” 

Andrew’s smoldering hazel eyes pin him in place with an indecipherable look. “Tell me again.”

“Just kiss me,” Neil snaps, and before Neil knows it, Andrew does just that. 

It’s a cautious kiss. Andrew keeps his teeth carefully out of the way. His lips are very cold, which Neil did not expect but should have. Andrew pulls away for a moment to whisper, “Don’t touch me anywhere except my hair.” He dives back in with an increased intensity. Neil’s hands come up to tangle in Andrew’s hair. Andrew has probably kissed a lot of people in his one hundred-odd years on Earth; he’s very good at it. He doesn’t seem to mind Neil’s lack of skill, though, because he kisses with a fervor that has Neil feeling tingly all over. He gives as good as he gets, but too soon, the kiss is over. 

Neil moves away and sits on his hands. Andrew has given him enough bread crumbs about his past for Neil to put things together. “That wasn’t so bad, was it?” Neil asks bitingly, but his voice is rough and uneven so it doesn’t quite have the effect he was going for. 

“Shut up,” Andrew hisses. “Go to sleep, Neil.”

Neil grins as he crawls under the blankets. “You’re a good kisser. Not enough teeth.” 

“I will kill you one day. I’ll give in and drink your blood.” Despite his harsh words, Andrew’s hand cards through Neil’s hair. “Good night, Neil.”

Neil grins. “Night, Andrew.” 

**

It becomes a regular thing. Neil and Andrew making out, that is, but Neil also starts staying at the vampire den more often than not. They start stocking regular food for him. Neil knows Andrew hates to be cooped up in his room all night when he sleeps over, but he never complains about making sure Neil feels safe. It’s heartwarming, but if Neil ever said that to Andrew he’d make some quip about how his heart can’t be warm, literally. 

Weeks pass, then months. Neil doesn’t think he’s ever been this happy. He has a family in the vampires. He forgets about his father. Well, not entirely; he knows the Butcher of Baltimore is out there searching for him, but Nathaniel Wesninski has nothing on the Palmetto vampire coven at Neil’s back. 

One Saturday morning, Neil wakes up in Andrew’s bed. He should really cancel his standing reservation at the motel, but the fear of permanence and reliance on Andrew irks him, so he makes Andrew keep it open. Andrew is sitting on the other side of the bed, engrossed in a trashy romance novel.

“Morning,” Neil mumbles into his pillow. He shifts over so he’s lying beside Andrew’s curled body. Andrew puts the book aside and lies down. He wraps his arms around Neil and pulls him close. 

“Morning,” Andrew murmurs. 

“I want to go for a run, Andrew,” Neil mutters into Andrew’s chest but makes no move to try and escape his grip. 

“You’re welcome to,” Andrew replies, holding him tighter. 

Neil falls back to sleep for a while, but when he wakes up an hour later, Andrew is still cuddling him. He shoves Andrew lightly to get him to move and goes about his morning routine. Get dressed, brush his teeth, go downstairs for breakfast. Someone is usually in the kitchen when Neil gets there, but it changes every day because of the randomness of the others’ schedules due to their lack of sleeping. Today, it’s Renee. She greets Neil and Neil waves to her. He’s gotten used to her oft-threatening presence recently.

His morning run starts out like most morning runs: slow and steady while he warms up. He lets his legs carry him mindlessly through the now-familiar forest roads. He hears a car drive near him, but pays no mind; it’s not that uncommon.

To his surprise, the car stops. Lola Malcolm steps out, followed closely by her brother. Lola grins menacingly, her blood red lips curling into a smile. She produces a knife and says, “Get in the car, junior.” 

Neil springs into action. He knows he can’t run; they would get in the car and follow. He knocks the knife out of her hand and screams at the top of his lungs, “ _ANDREW, HELP._ ” Lola looks at him like he’s off his rocker, but she doesn’t know that his friends have superhuman hearing. 

Lola knocks him down and picks up her knife. She grabs the collar of his shirt and drags him into the back of the car, helped by Romero. He ends up lying flat on his back in the back seat with Lola kneeling over him. He calls out again, but Lola puts her knife to his throat, effectively cutting him off. He strains against her hold, but she pushes down harder. Romero starts the car, but something goes wrong and the car jerks; the knife plunges deeper into Neil’s throat than Lola probably meant. Neil coughs, and blood spatters onto Lola’s horrified face. He laughs. Nathan won’t be happy if Lola kills him first. 

Suddenly, the car jerks again. Luckily, Lola has removed her knife. The door is thrown open so hard it flies entirely off the car. Neil turns his head feebly to see Andrew with Matt and Renee standing behind him. Neil then promptly blacks out. 

He comes to on the kitchen table of the house, which is surprising. He thought he was done for, but something is staunching the blood flow from his neck. Abby is standing over him with concern. “Neil, can you understand me?” 

Neil tries to talk, but blood comes out of his mouth, so he nods. 

“Okay, good. I need you to listen to me carefully. There is nothing I can do for you. You are going to die. If you want, one of us can Turn you, but no one is willing to do that without your permission. Do you want that, Neil?”

Neil thinks he may be delirious with blood loss. He thinks of Andrew watching over him all night and Renee sitting with him for breakfast and Dan putting his head in her lap when he got hit by a cyclist. He nods. 

**

The pain is like nothing Neil has ever felt before, and it lasts forever.

**

Neil wakes up feeling… different. Everything feels enhanced. He sits up, but a hand pushes him back down. 

“Neil?” Abby asks. “How are you feeling?”

He pushes her hand away and pulls himself into a sitting position. “Fine. Where’s Andrew?” He’s in Andrew’s familiar bedroom, but the man himself is nowhere to be found. 

Abby sighs. “He went hunting. He’ll be back soon. He’s barely left your side for days.” Neil nods, because it feels like the right thing to do. “You should look in the mirror,” Abby suggests, voice deceptively light. He stands up and walks toward the mirror on the back of Andrew’s door.

His eyes are a deep, dark red. 

“I like it,” Neil says, and he does. “I was never a fan of the blue.” It reminds him too much of his father. As he walks back toward the bed, the door flies open. Without a word, Andrew crowds him against the wall. 

“Your eyes,” Andrew whispers, and then kisses him. There’s the sound of Abby closing the door behind her. Neil tries to kiss him back, but his new fangs get in the way, pricking his lips painfully.

“Ouch,” Neil says.

Andrew abruptly pulls away and walks across the room, arms crossed. “You idiot. You colossal fucking moron. You should have just died human.”

Neil shrugs. “You don’t really think that. I don’t think I’m a monster, Andrew. I don’t think you’re one either.” 

“I hate you,” Andrew hisses. He gives Neil a look so vulnerable Neil can do nothing but stare. 

“Come here, baby,” he murmurs. Andrew does. He wraps Neil in his arms and tucks his head into the crook of Neil’s neck. They stand like this for a long time, enveloped in one another and the relief that Neil is _here_ and _alive_. Well, mostly. 

“Bitch. Dick ass. You’re the worst,” Andrew says into Neil’s throat. This turns into mouthing at Neil’s throat. His fangs brush against Neil’s skin, and everything feels new and _electric._

“Come on, Andrew, we have to go,” Neil interrupts, lacing his fingers through his lover’s hair. Andrew looks up, and Neil grins sharply, all teeth. “I’m hungry.”

**Author's Note:**

> Catch me at jonathansimz.tumblr.com. This isn't even the most ridiculous fic I've written for Andreil Week. Also, I wrote this AU over the course of like twelve hours and I fell in love with it immediately so you'll be seeing more no doubt. Thanks for reading!


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